Hanger



J. C. EDGAR March 15, 1949.

HANGER Filed Feb. 4,.1948

INVENTOR. EPH 0. ED A BY @QM; 544 M g Z ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 15, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HANGER Joseph 0. Edgar, Arlington, Va.

Application February 4, 1948, Serial No. 6,213

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a hanger, for suspending pictures or the like from a wall, of the type which has a hook-like member to be secured to a wall by a pin or brad driven into the wall.

Heretofore, hangers of this general type have not proven entirely satisfactory since in securing them to the wall a direct force on the head of the pin or other supporting member sufiicient to drive them into the wall is required. Frequently the force exerted to drive the sup-porting pin into the wall causes chipping or cracking of the plaster around the place where the pin is driven into the wall. Also when withdrawing the pin from the wall the force exerted on it to withdraw it from the plaster almost invariably causes the plaster next to the pin to chip and an unsightly place to be left on the wall at that place from which the hanger was removed.

Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a hanger in which the supporting pin may be inserted into a wall, particularly walls formed of plaster and similar materials, and removed therefrom without chipping or cracking the wall around the place where the pin is inserted or withdrawn. hanger in which the supporting pin thereof is caused to enter and to be withdrawn from the wall with a relatively slow rotative motion.

More specifically, the hanger of the instant invention comprises a hook-like suspending member having a base portion adapted to lie along the wall and a portion spaced forwardly therefrom, with such portions having aligned openings through which the supporting pin passes to enter the wall. The supporting pin has a threaded portion adjacent its head which threadedly engages the opening in the forwardly-spaced portion of the hanger, and which terminates a suflicient distance from the point of the supporting member as not to enter the wall when the threaded portion has been screwed through said opening until the head of the suuporting member engages the forwardly-spaced portion. Such threaded portion of the pin enables the smooth-pointed end of the pin to be inserted into and withdrawn from the wall with a relatively slow rotative motion, like that imparted to a screw.

The invention will be further described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a hanger of the type adapted for suspending pictures, etc. However, it is to be understood that such further description is by way of exemplification and the invention is not limited thereto except to the extent set forth in the appended claims.

This is attained by providing a Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the hanger secured to a wall,

Fig. 2 is a perspective View of the hanger element, and

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1, illustrating a modified form of the hanger element.

Referring to the drawings, and first to Figs. 1 and 2, the hanger comprises a hanger element A formed from a strip of material, such as brass,

2 copper, fiber sheeting, etc., which is strong enough and pliable enough to be bent or folded into the desired configuration. The hanger element A consists of a base portion I adapted to lie against a wall or other object to which the hanger may be attached. At the lower end of the base portion the strip of material is bent forwardly to form a hook 2 to receive a suspending wire or cord attached to the picture or other object to be supported. At the top end of the base portion the strip extends forwardly at substantially a right angle with the base to provide a horizontal top portion 3, the distal end of which is bent downwardly and inwardly toward the base portion to form an inclined portion 4.

To provide for the passage of a suitable supporting member to secure the hanger element to the wall, the base portion is provided with an opening 5, and an aligned opening 6 is provided at the juncture of the horizontal and inclined portions 3 and 4. However, if desired, the opening 6 may be provided in the forward end of the horizontal portion 3 or in the upper part of the inclined portion 4.

A supporting pin B for securing the hanger element to a wall preferably is made of a noncorrodible material, such as stainless steel, brass, etc., and includes a nail-like portion I which is adapted to enter the wall and which is of such length as to extend into the wall a distance sufficient to give adequate support to the hanger element, and an enlarged threaded portion 8 adjacent the head 9. The length of this threaded portion is approximately the length of the naillike portion of the pin extending therebeyond. The head of the supporting pin is formed with a slot or kerf l0, similar to a screw.

The opening 5 is the base portion is not threaded, but the opening 6 is provided with a thread to engage the threaded portion 8 of the supporting pin.

The length of the unthreaded portion of thesupporting pin is governed by the extreme distance between the aligned openings 5 and B in the hanger element so that when the supporting pin is inserted through the openings the point of the nail-like portion 1 will extend into but will not extend through the opening 5 in the base portion when the threaded portion 8 of the supporting pin first engages the threaded opening 6. However, it may be desirable to have the naillike portion of the supporting member slightly longer than the extreme distance between the openings 5 and 6 so that the point of the supporting pin initially will extend slightly through the opening 5 in the base portion in order that an initial start in securing the supporting pin occurs before the threaded portion 8 engages the threaded opening 6.

When the hanger is to be secured to a wall the supporting pin is inserted through the aligned openings in the hanger element until the threaded portion 8 thereof commences to engage the threaded opening 6, and the hanger then placed at the proper position against the wall or other object to which it is to be secured. With the aid of a screw driver the threaded portion of the supporting pin then is screwed into the threaded opening 6, which causes the nail-like portion to be slowly forced into the wall with a rotative motion. This rotating and slowly advancing movement of the supporting pin into the wall will cause a minimum amount of chipping or cracking of the wall surrounding the entering pin.

If the nail-like portion of the supporting pin is slightly longer than the extreme distance between the openings 5 and 5 so that it initially extends slightly through the opening 5 in the base of the hanger element, it will be necessary to exert a slight force against the supporting pin, after inserting it through the aligned threaded opening, to cause the point thereof to enter the wall a very short distance until the threaded portion 8 cornmen'ces to engage the threaded opening 6.

When the hanger is to be removed from the wall the method of inserting the supporting pin is reversed, that is, it is unscrewed until the threaded portion disengages the threaded opening 6. Thus, the pin is Withdrawn from the wall With a rotative and slowly retractive movement which causes withdrawal of the pin Without chipping or other damage to the wall. As the pin is of non-corrodible material it will not corrode while in the wall and adhere to the plaster in such manner as would interfere with its ready removal Without damage to the wall.

If desired, the head of the supporting pin instead of being slotted, as shown, may be otherwise formed for engagement by an appropriate tool to cause rotation of the pin.

A modified form of the invention is disclosed in Fig. 3 where neither of the openings in the hanger element is threaded. In this form of the invention, the opening 6 is of a size not smaller than the internal diameter nor larger than the outer diameter of the threaded portion 3 of the supporting pin B, and the strip of material from which the hanger element is formed is of such thickness as not to exceed the pitch of the threaded portion of the supporting pin, so that as the threaded portion 8' passes through the walls defining the opening 8 it will distort the material around the opening and form its own thread. Otherwise, the hanger shown in that figure is the same as the hanger shown in Figs. 1 to 2, and like parts are designated by like reference characters primed. Likew 'se, the manner of securing this form of the hanger to and removing it from a wall is the same as previously described with respect to the hanger of Figs. 1 to 2.

From the aforegoing, it will be seen that the present invention provides a hanger for the sus pension of various objects which is simple in construction, easily positioned and which may be inserted into and withdrawn from walls without marring them.

I claim:

1. A hanger comprising a hanger element having a base portion, a portion connected to one end of said base portion and spaced therefrom,

said base and spaced portions having align-ed' openings, the opening in said spaced portion being threaded, a supporting member having an unthreaded nail-like portion of a length substantially equal to the maximum distance between said openings, said supporting member also having a threaded portion threadably engageable With the threaded opening in said spaced portion, and a hook portion extending from the other end of said base portion. v

2. A hanger comprising a hanger element having a base portion, a portion connected to one end of said base portion and spaced therefrom, said base and spaced portions having aligned openings, a supporting member adapted to pass through said aligned openings and to secure said hanger element to a Wall or the like, said supporting member having a threaded portion threadably engageable with the walls defining the openings in said spaced portion, the opening in said spaced portion being of a size intermediate the inner and outer diameters of the threaded portion of the supporting member, and the material comprising the hanger element being of such thickness as not to exceed the pitch of the threaded portion of the supporting member so that as the threaded portion thereof passes through the walls defining the opening it will distort the material around the opening and form its own thread, and a hook portion extending from the other end portion.

3. In a support for pictures and the like comprising a hanger element formed of a strip of metal bent to form a base portion to lie against the wall, a portion extending from'one end of the base portion and spaced therefrom and a return bend at the other end of the base portion forming ahook at the same side of the base portion as said spaced portion, the base and spaced portion having aligned openings, the improvement in the supporting means for the hanger element comprising a supporting member having anunthreaded nail-like portion at one end of a size to pass freely through said openings and a threaded portion at the other end threadably engageable with the opening in the spaced portion.

JOSEPH C. EDGAR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Date Tinnerman Dec. 9-, 1947 of said base 

